Some say that life didn’t come with a manual but it did. The Holy Bible is your handbook to life from beginning to end. Not only that but it gives you all the answers to where you came from, why everything happens in the world and what happens to you in the next world.
In this brief article, I will show you why it is the only authority to be trusted, how it can be used to test and prove all things and how the Bible can change your life forever. Take hold of your Bible, your handbook to life, and follow me through as we take a look at it together.
What is the Bible?
The Bible is not one book, it is a collection of 66 books and letters. These books were written by different authors over a period of at least 1,400 years. However, all these books tie together and provide one central message, the Kingdom of God and your part in it.
Without going into too much technical detail, the books in our Bibles were translated from ancient manuscripts. You can view a complete list of versions and how they were translated on Wiki.
The authors of the New Testament often refer to various Hebrew and Greek sources in their writings, but they do not explicitly mention any specific manuscripts. However, they may have drawn on a number of earlier texts and traditions, including:
The Hebrew Bible: The authors of the New Testament frequently quote from or allude to the Hebrew Bible, which was the primary religious text of the Jewish people.
Jewish apocryphal and pseudepigraphical texts: These are Jewish texts that were composed in the centuries leading up to the New Testament period but were not included in the Hebrew Bible. Some of these texts are referenced in the New Testament, including the Book of Enoch and the Assumption of Moses.
The Septuagint: This is a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible that was widely used in the Mediterranean world during New Testament times. The authors of the New Testament often quote from or allude to the Septuagint.
Other Greek and Roman sources: The authors of the New Testament also draw on various Greek and Roman literary traditions, including philosophy, mythology, and history. For example, the apostle Paul references the Greek poet Epimenides in his letter to Titus.
From this, we can see why it is possible that some people say that the Bible is full of contradictions. In fact, the reason why there appears to be a contradiction is that most English translations are primarily translated from manuscripts called the Masoretic Text. This is a Hebrew text of the Old Testament that was produced by a group of Jewish scribes known as the Masoretes. This was compiled and edited between the 7th and 10th centuries AD, although some parts of it may date back as early as the 2nd century AD.
The Masoretic Text was used for most Protestant translations of the Old Testament such as the King James Version, ESV, NASB, and NIV.
This text contains several key errors that are so methodically placed as to have been a deliberate attempt by the Jewish scribes to change dates and times and text from the original pre-Christian days in order to discredit Christain teachings and to deny Jesus as the Messiah.
These points will be explained in detail in a coming article so be sure to subscribe for updates. However, I will show one example.
The following table shows the ages of a selection of patriarchs shown in each of the texts. The column on the left is altered by the scribes and is shown in most translations of the Bible. The column on the right is the original translations referred to by the disciples.
A total of 650 years were deducted by the scribes in this one example. This was done in order to convince readers that Shem would have been alive at the time of Abraham and thus back up their false claim that Shem was Melchizedek. This may seem irrelevant at first glance but this would legitimise the Levitical claim to the Priesthood and therefore discredit Jesus' claim of being the Messiah and our High Priest after the order of Melchizedek.
More will come in my next article but just this one shows that you always need more than one translation if you are to study God's Word.
All I want to point out here is that we do have the complete and true Bible and all of its messages are true and inspired by God. Sometimes though, you need to check original texts to get the bottom of something that seems to contradict. In the end, you will see that despite some trickery, God's Truth will prevail.
Which Bible to use?
Unless you can read the original Hebrew and Greek, you will need a translation of the Bible in your own language. As an English speaker, I can only subject that I prefer and give the reasons for it. There are many good translations but be sure to use a complete Bible as you will not get a complete understanding with just the New Testament.
The reason for this, as you can see by reading any book or letter from the New Testament, is that the only scriptures the people used, quoted from or taught at that time are the writings from the pre-Christian era.
I will always refer to more than one translation of the Bible when I am studying as this allows you to read from different perspectives. When the meaning is still unclear or I want to look at the accuracy, I will always go to the Strongs Exhaustive Concordance to find the original meanings of words.
New King James Version
Personally I choose the New King James Version (NKJV) as my Bible to record my notes, underline and link verses. I will turn to this version every time I was to study a subject.
The reason for this is that it is based on one of the original translations, KJV but is written in easier-to-understand language at the same time as retaining its original translation.
Revised Standard Version
This is the first translation I read when I started my studies in 1976. It is as reliable as the KJV but, like the NKJV it is easier to read without detracting from the true meaning of scripture.
New Living Translation
For my day-to-day reading when I want to pick up the Bible and read a passage or check something quickly, I will pick up my New Living Translation (NLT) as it retains the original meaning, includes references back to the earlier, more accurate Septuagint manuscripts to check variations of the later Masoretic text usually used.
New International Version
I also refer to the NIV Study Bible as it helps to give a quick overview of verses and is also very easy to read.
There are many more translations but as I have not used them, I can not give a personal recommendation.
If you want to study the Word of God though, I would not recommend any “gender neutral” versions or any version using contemporary English or paraphrased versions like The Living Bible, Good News Bible or the Contemporary English Version as they lose the true meaning.
Also, avoid religion-specific versions such as Catholic Bibles and New World Translations (Jevovas Witness version) as they contain biased translations to teach their own traditions.
How to read and understand the Bible
Always begging with a short prayer for your eyes to be open to God's truth and to understand His meaning behind what you are going to read.
Always remember that Scripture interprets itself. It is not open to private interpretation (2 Peter 1:20). Also, never take one verse and then keep using is to emphasise a habit or why you do things in a particular way. This is misusing scripture. A single verse can be interpreted as one thing but it means another when you look at the context in which it was written, who said it, who it was directed to and where and when it was written.
A good example of this is when people misuse the verse “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged.” (Matthew 7:1). If you study your Bible you are always told to judge and discern the truth and sin: “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” 1 Thessalonians 5:21; “Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.” John 7:24; “Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?” (1 Corinthians 6:3); “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2.
Symbols are often used in scripture. Again, don't try to put meaning to a symbol without looking elsewhere for that same symbol. For example, Rev 13:1 "Then I saw a beast rising up out of the sea". What is a beast? Daniel 7:17 tells us that a beast as a symbol represents a nation. What is the sea? Revelations 17:15 tells us the waters represent "masses of people", a nation or groups of nations.
Also, look for other places in the Bible that could relate to what you are reading to ensure that it is not an erroneous interpretation. “everything you say may be confirmed by two or three witnesses.” (Matthew 18:16; 2 Corinthians 13:1). Look in other places for confirmation (Isa 28:10).
Many things in the Bible can also be a hint to something of another time or an allusion. An example of this can be when literal captivity can be alluded to mean spiritual captivity. In the same type of way, numbers can represent something else.
An example of this is the “one day = a year principle”. This can be seen in Psalm 90:4; Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:5–6; Daniel 9:24–27.
Conclusion
The Bible is God's Word, treat it as such. It should act as your guide to living, your relationship with God and our saviour, Jesus Christ and your relationships with other people.
Be sure to read your Bible each day and to think upon His Word each day (Joshua 1:8).
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